Calgary, AB- The opening dress rehearsal is in the books. And now comes some more time for evaluation and roster decisions. The BC Lions and Calgary Stampeders endured a 30-minute weather delay and then it was the home team who prevailed 30-6 on a windy and mostly overcast day at McMahon Stadium. With thunderstorms forecasted in the area, teams retreated to their locker rooms after only a few minutes of warmups before getting the green light to kickoff at 2:34 pm local time.
Hard Loss, But Evaluation Remains The Priority
It was tough sledding for the offence in the opening half as their lone first down for an eternity came by way of a Calgary misconduct penalty on the Lions’ second series. The offence then wasn’t able to move the chains again until the final minute of the half with a Dakota Prukop completion to Jalen Sample setting up a Carl Meyer field goal as time expired. It was 13-3 Stampeders at the break with the lone major coming on a Jake Meir completion to Marken Michel on the game’s opening drive.
The second half was a similar story with Calgary getting two more majors on the ground from running back BJ Emmons. Quarterback Chase Brice played the entire second half for the visitors and was able to engineer a few lengthy drives although the Lions couldn’t find the end zone on this day. Brice finished 10/16 for 126 yards passing and also did some damage on the ground by picking up eight yards for a first down to extend a series in the third quarter.
Overall, it was long overdue for the Clemson and Appalachian State product who spent the majority of 2023 on the practice squad without seeing any live game action until this one.
“We really wanted to give him a good look. He’s been with us a long time but he hasn’t really played any games. So, we wanted to make sure he got a really good look. And I think we did,” explained Rick Campbell after the loss.
Brice himself gave credit to a few of the young receivers he hit including Jalen Sample, Ed Lee and Taylor Grimes.
“I think the biggest thing was getting in a rhythm and not going two and out,” said the quarterback.
“Giving them good balls and the chance to make a play, when I do that those guys are going to come down and do it.”
Brice had the offence in a position to punch in a major on the game’s final play but fumbled on the goal line not once, but twice after the Stamps gave them a second chance following an offside. What can we say? Ups and downs of this great game.
“Pre-season. Definitely something you can build on,” said Brice.
Jake Dolegala started and played the first quarter, completing just one of seven pass attempts for eight yards. In the second quarter, Dakota Prukop went 4/9 for 58 yards.
For the Lions as a whole, it definitely wasn’t what they wanted on the scoreboard but it will go a long way in determining the tough decisions that need to be made over the final few days of the training camp grind in Kamloops.
“I was impressed with our complete level and our composure for the guys that were playing their first pro or game after the lightning delay and the way that was going, ” added Campbell.
“Obviously, you want to execute better and play better but I think the mission here was to evaluate people and we want to make sure we don’t miss out on someone who can help us this year. We need to really do a good job over the next 24 hours of watching this film and seeing what these guys did so that we can make good decisions on who to keep.”
Key Numbers
38:45- the Stampeders owned time of possession in this one. No surprise considering the personnel they dressed with quarterback Jake Maier and several key starters.
221– Net offence for the Lions compared to 392 for the opposition.
52- Eddie Lee led all Lions in receiving yards while hauling in four receptions.
2– Field goals for top Global Draft pick Carl Meyer. The South African hit from 42 and 35 yards.
7- A game-high in tackles for defensive back hopeful Jordan Perryman of the Lions. Considering the Stamps’ offence had starters in for much of the night, the unit for Ryan Phillips can hang their heads high.
Next Up
The Lions return to Kamloops for four more days of training camp activity at Hillside Stadium. Pre-season concludes with a home contest against the Edmonton Elks next Friday at Save-On-Foods Field at BC Place. Kickoff is 7:00 pm.